Classmancers - A MOBA Esport Story

Vol.6 Ch.9: Sizing Up the Opponents

"Phew, finally..." Yuel sighed as he dropped on a chair. His muscles were legit dead right now. However, the torture was finally over; they finished cleaning up the clubroom.

"Okay!" Lars was pumped a fist, still full of energy as ever. "Now, let's 2v2!"

"Eh," Kai made a face. "Don't you want to rest first?"

"Nah, rest is for the weak! Let's go go go! Or, wait, are you guys tired?"

"Eh?" Kai frowned. "N-Not really, not me. I just thought the others might be. No way this much would tire me. It was like a brief workout, nothing more."

"Okay, then let's do it!"

"A moment, please," Vincent's voice resounded from somewhere but he was nowhere to be found. "Don't know about you, but I need to take five. Or fifty, even."

"... why are you lying on the floor?" Kai raised an eyebrow.

"This may look like the floor to you, but it's actually a bed. I dub it the Makeshift Floor Bed!"

"You're literally just lying on the floor."

"It's the Ultimate Makeshift Floor Bed!"

"You gonna get yourself dirty."

"Nah, we just wiped it clean, remember? Therefore, it's the Ultimate Sparkling Makeshift Floor Bed!"

"Whatever," Kai shrugged. "If you need a rest so hard, then we should take a break."

"Yep, let's take a huge break," Vincent said. "Like, for an hour or two."

"Just how tired are you?"

"Imagine I'm a Warlock who ran out of MP early on and continued spamming spells all day long at the cost of my HP. That's how tired I am. I'm literally dying over here."

"Seriously," Kai shook her head. "Aren't you supposed to be a boy? Get a grip."

"I identify as the Digital Boy class. I got high INT but low STAMINA."

I guess I belong to that class too. Yuel silently nodded. He also needed some rest for his sore muscles, but thankfully he didn't have to admit it. I'll let Vincent look like the only unfit guy in here. Flawless strategy.

"Okay," Lars sat down. "Tell me when you dudes are ready to go."

Everybody sat down, except for Vincent who insisted to keep planking on the floor like a noodle. It's like he was making a public statement against the atrocity that was cleaning.

Nobody was busy right now, so it was a great opportunity to make some small talk and get to know the other members. Alas, Yuel hasn't invested any SP into his "Small Talk" skill, so it was unusable. On the other hand, Lars had that skill as a passive ability he was born with.

"So," Lars started. "Where's the rest of the club? You're not the only ones here, right?"

"There are two more," Kai said. "Luke made an excuse to ditch cleaning, as expected. Ben was supposed to come, but I guess his... Eh, his 'friends' probably dragged him somewhere again."

The other members sound like a bunch of troublemakers. Yuel thought. He hoped a small club like this would be a house for a few but very competent individuals, but that impression has been shattering with every passing moment. And, it didn't help that the school was treating the club like dirt, which probably further discouraged new students from joining.

It felt like a catch-22. The school didn't think highly of a club dedicated to a video game, so it treated the club like a nuisance. As a result, the club got a barely functional clubroom that was hidden deep in the basement and was allowed to recruit only a small number of students. As a result, the club performed poorly in tournaments and the school got another reason to cut the club's numbers. It's a vicious cycle.